When It Matters Most, Successful Leaders Know These 18 Things

What I am about to write will be considered by many heresy.  I understand and respect their viewpoint because as recently as one year ago I would have thought the very same thing.  But with each passing game I feel it is time for a legitimate conversation acknowledging LeBron James has surpassed Michael Jordan as The GOAT, the greatest basketball player of all-time.

On  Saturday evening, James hit yet another buzzer beater enabling his underdog Cleveland Cavaliers to defeat the Toronto Raptors 105-103 and take a 3-0 games lead.  A video of the iconic shot is shown above.

An ESPN article by Brian Windhorst and Dave McMenamin captured a series of quotes after the game about the final shot.  You can read their full article by clicking here.  As I read the statements, I gleaned 18 Things Leaders Do When It Matters Most:

1. When It Matters Most, Successful Leaders Are Resilient – James admitted, “It should never have come down to that point. We had a really good lead to start the fourth, and we came out and didn’t execute and didn’t play the way we should have.”
2. When It Matters Most, Leaders Step Up And Take Personal Ownership Of The Results – Raptors coach Dwane Casey said, “Well, our goal in the timeout was to trap him and make someone else beat us.”
3. When It Matters Most, Successful Leaders Listen To Smart People – James acknowledged, “(Head Coach) T. Lue was the one who told us, ‘Let’s take it full court,’ knowing I had more than enough time to get the ball up the court, and by us doing that it doesn’t allow the defense to kind of sit and see what you’re going to do.”
4. When It Matters Most, Successful Leaders Are Creative – Cavs guard George Hill said, “When they came out of the huddle, they didn’t expect us to inbound full court. They were confused a little bit.”
5. When It Matters Most, You Want The Ball In Your Leader’s Hands – Raptors guard Fred VanVleet said, “Obviously in that position, best-case scenario you get the ball out of his hands.”
6. When It Matters Most, Leaders Should Have No Regrets – Raptors forward OG Anunoby said, “We didn’t really think about trapping him. Maybe in hindsight.”
7. When It Matters Most, Successful Leaders Clearly Communicate – Casey said, “It was probably my fault that I didn’t make it clear that we wanted to trap him and get the ball out of his hands.”
8. When It Matters Most, Leaders Need Margin To Be Successful – James said, “I had more than enough time to get the ball from one baseline to the other; that’s way more time than I needed. They did a good job of putting pressure on me in the backcourt, and they put two on me first, and I was able to get open.”
9. When It Matters Most, Successful Leaders Play To Their Strengths – Cavs guard Kyle Korver said, “We’re spacing [the floor]. Bron is going to put his head down, he’s going to get to the basket. It’s just, he’s hardest to guard when he’s got a full head of steam. So, the more space he has, the larger his head of steam.”
10. When It Matters Most, Successful Leaders Trust Their Preparation – Korver continued, “I’ve seen him shoot that shot countless times at shootaround when he’s just like messing around. He’ll shoot all these crazy shots all the time. And you’re like, ‘Man, when would he shoot that shot?’ Maybe to win a playoff game, apparently.”
11. When It Matters Most, Successful Leaders Reach Deep Into Their Toolbox – Hill said, “Today was, I guess, the day he pulled that out of the toolbox.”
12. When It Matters Most, Successful Leaders Are Decisive – James said, “When do I decide which shot I’m going to take? To be honest, sometimes I really don’t know, but I trust every shot that I’m going to take because I work on every shot.”
13. It Is Difficult To Succeed When It Matters Most – James humorously said, “The level of difficulty of that is very difficult. Don’t try it at home.”
14. When It Matters Most, It Is A Chance For Leaders To Show Off – Cavs forward Jeff Green said, “I think everybody this time was just in awe. It’s amazing to continue to watch, watch what he does.”
15. Leaders Live For The Moments Which Matters Most – James, admitted, “I live for those moments.”
16. Leaders Are Expected To Deliver When It Matters Most – “Korver said, “I think we’re expecting him to win the game in the end when it’s close. We feel like he’s going to make the plays.”
17. When It Matters Most, You Are Glad You Have A Great Leader On Your Team – Green proclaimed, “I’m glad he’s on our team.”
18. Successful Leaders Have Been Dreaming About Succeeding When It Matters Most Their Entire Lives – James concluded “I’ve been doing that since I was like 6, 7, 8 years old. Maybe even before that. There’s a picture floating around of me beside a Little Tikes hoop with a saggy Pamper on and I was doing it back then and all the way up until now, at 33. Things that you dream about, that you get those opportunities, and I’ve been fortunate enough to get a handful of those in some of the biggest moments in my career.”

What is one thing you learned about leading when it matters most from LeBron James?

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